Death's Apprentice
by Mochytea
Summary: Commiters of suicide become Reapers and Omens, condemned to lose the memories of their pasts. A certain Death Reaper and a special Omen haunt the state of New Jersey, but what will they do when their own pasts threaten their existence?  Accepting OCs.
1. The Very Beginning

**Hallo! If you are reading this then that means you are interested or somewhat interested in this story, have nothing to read or wants to see what kind of crap this is.  
Well!  
This is just on a whim. I thought of this while on my three week long trip, so it's not that great. Hopefully you'll like it, whoever you are.  
****And I'm accepting OCs, too. :)  
Hopefully it's not crap! **

There are many names for Death in this world. Black angel, Grim Reaper, messenger of Death. But here, in this time and place, they call themselves Death Reapers. Committers of suicide, the ultimate sin, they are punished by collecting the souls of the dying and bringing them to the Council of the Dead, who judges them and determines their fate.

Alongside them are the Death Omens, spirits of people who traded their life force for their dying loved ones'. Given the body of a black cat and the ability to sense the dying, they appear before the unfortunate victim and call its Reaper. Neither could do their job without each other.

Both Omens and Reapers have their memories of their past lives erased. If they are remembered, they are forced to go to eternal confinement where they are left alone, so that they will go to pieces in solitude.

It's a serious issue to recall what is meant to be forgotten in the world of the Dead.

* * *

"Bye Riley!"

"See you tommorow!"

"Don't forget to study for that test next week!"

I smiled at the three teenage girls outside of my house, my long, chestnut hair dancing in the breeze.

"See you guys, too."

After several long minutes of hugging, waving, and laughing, I watched them walk away, talking to each other and fretting about that English test that I didn't even remember. Soon, they were out of sight.

Finally.

I walked inside my modest house and tossed my overweight backpack onto a couch. Then, I looked around. Anna was already gone.

"Fine, start without me, you impatient meanie," I muttered to myself as I crossed the hall to my miniscule room. "I told her that I had detention today; didn't I specifically ask her to wait for me?"

I sat down on the tiny twin-sized bed and glanced at the clock.

5:45 P.M.

Shit. I was supposed to start twenty-five minutes ago!

I cursed to myself as I stripped off my tee shirt and shorts, then ran to my bottom drawer and flung it open. Yanking out the clothes from inside, I threw them on. Then, I closed my eyes and utilized my unique shape-shifting ability. My hair grew shorter and darker, my skin paler, and even my height grow three inches. Well, every little detail counted; I couldn't be recognized.

The uniform for my…occupation was vague. All it had to be was black, dark, able to blend into the night. I wore the clothes of the last person in my position, who happened to be a boy my age. So it consisted of a black hoodie, dark blue jeans, black sneakers, and a black cap. Simple.

I opened my eyes and looked at myself in the mirror. I narrowed my now silver irises at the three, pale scars that ran left-to-right across my forehead, the longest one crossing my right eye. No, now was not the time to try remembering memories that should never be unearthed from the black hole in my mind. To do so would result in a terrible punishment, so dreadful that even the strongest Death Reapers fall to pieces and their souls vanish completely. Shaking away stray thoughts, I swiftly leapt out the window and took off into the night.

* * *

I ran down the darkening street, my breaths appearing in little clouds in the frozen air. 'Where is she, where is she,' I grumbled to myself as I looked around. Finally, I found her, changed in her own uniform consisting of tight black robes wrapped around her body. They were held together by, strangely enough, a bright pink sash around her middle. The same color thread was stitched in patterns all over the black cloths. The Death Reaper's long, similar pink hair reached her knees and swayed in the wind. Her emerald green eyes stared at me disapprovingly as I reached her, hunched over and gasping for breath. "You're late," Anna said.

"No shit, Sherlock," I retorted, slowly catching my breath. "Didn't I tell you that I was going to be late? I asked you to wait for me!"

"Death Reapers wait—"

"Yeah, yeah, they wait for no one. Too bad you can't do your job well without a Death Omen."

"You shouldn't have gotten detention," she replied simply. Her hard eyes glittered. "If you were more careful in school, you wouldn't have been in trouble, so you wouldn't have received detention and thus wouldn't have been late."

I bit my lip and lowered my eyes in shame, hating her clear logic.

The young woman smiled at my reaction. I heard her walk over to me and I felt her cool fingers lift my chin. She gazed into my eyes and said, "Let's get to work, shall we?"

I sighed and answered, "Yeah. Let's."

**Yes, I know, it's short. But the next chapter's a bit longer.**

**Here's the OC form:**

**Name: (Try to stay away from Japanese names, please. But if you must...)**

**Gender:**

**Human or Death Reaper? Choose 1. (Humans are Riley's friends, by the way)**

**If you are a Death Reaper: What kind of Death Omen do you have? (See Chapter 2 for explanation; must be an animal)**

**Personality: (Nice, shy, paranoid? Mean? A bully? Describe what kind of person your OC is. Thoroughly, please, or else I'll have nothing to work with.)**

**History: (How did your OC become a Death Reaper If you chose that? Or for the human: Any experience with Death? But no sappy sad story, like, 'Oh, my whole family was massacred last night and I just barely escaped with my life' kinda thing. Something more realistic like a disease or fatal injursy. Be creative, but not fantastical.)**

**Family: (Does your Death Reaper OC have a still-living family? What was his or her relationship to them? Human: Same thing, but again, try to stay away from 'Yeah, my dad drinks every two seconds of his life and beats me, my mother can't keep her hands out of the pants of every guy walking down the street, my brother is a drop out and a drug dealer, and my sister has...issues.' Please, try to stick to the norm or something.)**

**Weapon (Death Reaper): (Not the Super Awesome Stick of Incredible Spirit Power, please. A scythe is good, but kind of boring. Swords, daggers, shuriken, maces, lances, whips, etc. There will be demons in the future, so something decent. If you are stuck, flip through the cast of characters of Bleach, Naruto, Buso Renkin, etc for the weapons)**

**Hobbies: (Something your OC likes to do. Include dislikes, fears, and what he or she likes. Just an extra detail for the character)**

**Since this IS my first OC fiction, if there's anything you'd like to add, just tell me.  
PM me, please. Reviews are for the story, PMs are for everything else. If you would like to submit an OC, review in advance.**

**I will accept 7 Death Reapers and 5 human friends, so submit ASAP!**

**Thanks for reading!**

**~kurochan **


	2. Death Omen Flashback 1

**FLASHBACK**

My name is Riley Thymes, and I'm a Death Omen because of my older sister, Elena. She had leukemia since she was five years old and I was two. But the doctors discovered the cells too late, and despite the years of treatment and all that shit, she was condemned to die.  
-oOo-

"E-Elena, don't die, don't leave me alone," I begged. "Please..."

I was sitting on the stool next to my older sister's bed, holding her slender, cold hand. Elena turned her head to me. Her shaven scalp shone like a polished diamond, reflecting the faint moonlight peeking through the near-translucent curtains. She fixed her dusty brown eyes, once the color of dark chocolate, on my own earth-colored irises.

"Don't waste the rest of your life mourning for me when I die", she whispered.

"But Elly—"

"If you do, I'll haunt you for the rest of your life, then bully you for all eternity in the afterlife when you join me again." Elena narrowed her eyes in mock fury.

Despite the current situation, I had to giggle. Even at Death's door, her sense of humor and sarcasm never wavered. We laughed together at the tiny joke and smiled broadly. Suddenly, in the midst of chuckling, Elena started to cough violently, as if she was trying to dislodge her very heart. I grabbed a tall glass of ice cold water that was sitting on her dresser and waited until she was done. My own heart thumped nervously as her hand tightened on mine.

Shakily, Elena took the cup from me and drained half of it in one gulp. When she handed it back, tiny beads of blood swirled around in the remainder of the liquid. She winced as she saw the reddening water and said, "I think it's time."

With those terrible words, Elena collapsed back onto her bed.

"Elena!"

The sixteen-year old girl took several deep breaths, then looked weakly at me. "Riley, you know your 14th birthday is in twenty minutes."

I couldn't help myself; I gaped at my sister. "Elly, right now, you have leukemia, coughing up blood and dying, and you talk about my birthday?"

She laughed softly. "My only regret is that my last gift to you is my death."

It was 11:43 P.M.

Elena's eyes were beginning to flutter.

"Elly...!"

_'Woooooooooooosh!'_

Woosh?

The windows suddenly flung open. Strong gusts of wind filled the room, tossing my dark hair. Strangely, nothing else in Elena's bedroom moved.

Instinctively, I covered my face with my arms. When the gusts died down, I lowered my limbs, looked at the other side of the bed, and jumped. For there, in front of me, was a young woman.

* * *

She was wearing black and pink robes and held a long wooden staff in her left hand. She obviously did not see me as she ignored me completely. Then, she bent over my sister's wisp of a body.

I forgot my fear at that moment.

"Hey you! What are you doing with my sister?"

I was ignored.

The pink-haired woman began to mumble under her breath, making strange movemets wih her free hand. As she did so, Elena began to glow a sickly blue.

I was pissed.

"HEY! Get AWAY from her!" With that, I picked up my slipper and flung it at the woman with all of my might. It landed smack on her face and she stumbled back.

When she stood up, an oval-shaped red mark decorating her pale skin, her eyes were blazing like green fire.

"How DARE you, a human, strike a Death Reaper like me like that?"

I opened my mouth to retort, but she changed her expression in a flash. "Wait...you can see me?"

I scoffed. "'Course I can! You freak, answer me! You Death Eater or whatever you called yourself!"

"I am Anna, a Death Reaper, not Eater! I gather souls and take them to the other world."

I gaped again. "What? So you're taking my sister?"

"Yup."

"No, you can't!" The sudden outburst made HER jump. "Elly's only sixteen! She's getting her driver's permit in two weeks, celebrating her 17th birthday in five months, and her third anniversary with her boyfriend in five days! She's a straight A student and an amazing musician! She worked so hard to get to where she is now, and you're just going to take it all away from her?"

I was gasping for breath when I finished my speech. Anna recovered from her shock afterwards and gave me a look of genuine pity.

11:51 P.M.

"I'm really sorry, kid, but your sister is not going to make it. She has a life threatening disease and her body can't keep up with it anymore. It's her time to go."

Tears blurred my vision as my dark brown eyes flickered from Elena to the Death Reaper. All of a sudden, I got an idea. It was incredibly crazy, insane, and seemingly impossible. But it was worth a try.

I turned to Anna and said, "Take me instead."

* * *

She stared. "What?"

I firmly gazed into her eyes. "Take me instead," I repeated. "I've hardly ever gotten sick and when I did, in the smallest degree. Give Elena my health and my life and take my soul instead."

Anna was silent for a long time. "Are you sure about that?"

My eyes widened. "You can do that? Take me, I mean?"

"Of course we can," Anna replied. "But you won't be a normal soul if I take you."

"Why?"

"Well see, Death Reapers are souls who commited the ultimate crime, suicide. The punishment is collecting souls. Those who did what you want to do, trade your life for others, do not really commit suicide. But because of the similarity, they become Death Omens."

My mind was swimming with all of this information. "What's a Death Omen?"

"A Death Omen is what it's called. It's able to smell Death from anywhere within a certain radius, depending on how strong it is. But," she added, "they no longer have a human form."

"What do you mean?" I asked in wonder, enchanted by what I was hearing.

"As in, they're given an animal form, usually something like a cat, wolf, or crow. An ominous animal, usually black, of course."

"Why is that?" I asked again.

She was silent again, looking down at her robes. Then, she continued, "Because their memories are taken away."

"What?" I cried.

"The Council can't have the Reapers and Omens be depressed about their past!" she exclaimed.

"So, you too?" I replied quietly.

"They change your appearance, too," she added again. "Do you think a normal human would have this color hair?" Anna tugged at her long, pink locks.

I was torn. I didn't know what to do. While I didn't want to let Elena die, not when I could save her, but I didn't want to lose my memory either. All of those good times with my friends and family, being together, being happy and sad and upset and all of those emotions…But I don't have a choice now.

"I'll go with you," I decided. "For Elena."

Anna gazed into my dark brown eyes. "Alright then." At that very moment, she whipped out a dagger, huge and silver. Its blade was completely straight and a foot long, glowing the same, sickly blue like the film that was once around my sister. The hilt was plain and wooden.

"This aura is called The Energy of the Dead. Its powers are complicated to describe," she said quietly, her pale face illuminated by the knife.

"Here, take it," she said, offering the spiritual blade to me. I took it gingerly and shuddered as I felt a chill run through my body as soon as I touched it. "Now, stab yourself through your soul!"

I looked at her dumbly. "You want me to do what, where?"

"Strike yourself where your soul resides in your chest!"

"Um, and that is…"

"In the middle of your chest, you stupid ass!"

"Jeez, jeez. No need to be so mean," I whimpered, setting the tip to the mentioned area.

"As soon as the dagger pierces your soul, it'll transfer the energy to your sister. The health of her soul and the health of yours will trade places, and your body will become like hers, and hers yours. A matching incision will appear on your sister's body, as well."

Skeptically, I glanced at the woman. "Are you sure this'll work?"

As I brought the blade forward, she answered, "Well, cases like this only appear every century or so, and I'm new…"

"What?"

She chuckled, and I felt compelled to stop this instant and work something out. But the momentum of the spirit dagger was too strong and I ran myself through.

At that moment, a silver light came from the cut and filled the room, a golden one coming from Elena. I watched as a neutral white light, the energy, I guess, flew out of my body. From my sister, a pure black one emerged. They flew right through each other, my energy slipping into Elena's body, and hers slamming mercilessly into my own. I gasped as pain spread through my body. _I guess this is how she felt all along_, I thought to myself as the ache blossomed in every cell. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Elena's breath slow to a peaceful pace and her face relax. I smiled, but was snapped out of it as more pain racked my poor body.

After what seemed like an eternity, it began to fade, and I felt myself losing conscience. At the brink of awareness, I watched Anna walk towards me. "Now," she murmured, and with a swift movement, slashed three, long claw-like nails across my forehead. The world turned black.

**Well, that's chapter 2 and longer than the first one! Yay!**

**Remember, nice, motivating reviews and I'll continue.**


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